Neighborhood Meeting Minutes: September 2026

by

Brookfield Heritage Neighborhood Association 

Annual Meeting Minutes

DRAFT

Date: September 13th, 2026

Board Members:  Steve Beckman (Secretary), Mike Benedict (Communications), Nella Davis-Ray (President), John Hays, Matthew Kazmierski (Vice President), Denise Moore, Judy Putnam, Alice Schehr (Treasurer), Rhoda Wolff

Call to order: Nella Davis-Ray called to order this annual meeting of the Brookfield Heritage Neighborhood Association at 5:04 pm ET on September 13th, 2026 at 164 Maplewood Dr.

Roll Call:

  • Property owners from the following addresses were in attendance:
    • 136, 155, 164, 174, 184, 192, 237, 241, and 245 Maplewood
    • 103, 131, 136, 147, 155, 164, 204, 205, 217, 236, 237, 244, 252, 253, 274, and 277 Oakland
    • 1511, 1523, 1524, 1625, 1645, 1715 Roseland
  • Quorum present: Yes – 31 of 94 property owners
  • New neighbors: 164 Maplewood 

Approval of Past Minutes

A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes from the annual meeting held on September 14th, 2025 as presented. The motion carried without objection.

Treasurer Updates

  1. Alice Schehr stated the association’s current account balance is $4,071.03
  2. Alice provided a breakdown of non-tree expenses from 2025-2026
    • $200 for brookfieldneighborhood.net website hosting
    • $125 for Licensing and Regulatory Affairs registration as a non profit organization
    • Luminaria expenses: $150 for tea lights / candles and $60 for paper bags
    • Newsletter and other neighborhood communications: $14 for printing, $60 for copying and folding, $82 for stamps
    • $75 for food and beverages for the annual picnic
    • $80 for tree guards for newly-planted replacement street trees

Tree Report

  1. Alice reported that $2,537.40 was spent on thirteen replacement street trees that were purchased and planted since the 2025 annual meeting. Five Treegator slow-release watering bags were purchased for a total of $96.54.
  2. Ten trees were removed in December 2025 as part of the City’s tree trimming cycle
  3. Three trees were removed due to storm damage
  4. Eleven new replacement trees have been approved for planting. They will be purchased and planted this fall and will be Gingkos, Tulip Trees, American Elms, or White Oaks.
  5. Alice shared the City’s guidelines for replacement street trees:
    • The City owns the property that is 25 feet away, in both directions, from the center of each street
    • New trees should be six feet away from driveways, 30 feet away from stop signs, ten feet away from street signs, 25 feet away from utility and light poles
      • Large trees should be 30-35 feet away from each other, medium trees 25 feet away from each other, and small trees 15 feet away from each other
  6. Alice thanked the following members of the Environment Committee for their efforts: Jennifer Castner, Jackie Hughes, Diane Kearns, and Gail Lira

Safety Report

  1. Neighborhood police officer Jack Saylor was not available to provide a safety report

Board Member Elections

  1. The three-year terms for Board members Nella Davis-Ray, John Hayes, and Denise Moore have expired
  2. Nella, Stuart Blythe of 144 Oakland, and Amber Sheerin of 136 Maplewood were nominated by meeting attendees
    • A motion was made and seconded to accept all three of the nominees. The motion carried without objection.

New Business

  1. East Lansing City Council member Steve Whelan, a former resident of 136 Maplewood for 30 years, addressed meeting attendees
    • Steve encouraged neighbors to get engaged with city government by participating in committees and task forces
  2. East Lansing Mayor Erik Altmann addressed meeting attendees
    • Erik thanked the neighborhood association for continuing to be involved in city operations
    • A question was asked about the recent installation of roundabouts on Cahill and John R for traffic calming
      • Local neighborhood meetings were held and residents approved of them in order to reduce traffic speeds
      • The current installations are only temporary
      • Roundabouts are not planned for the Brookfield neighborhood due to the close proximity of driveways
    • The East Lansing Police Department is budgeted for 55 police officers and currently has 53 active officers. The majority of them are at the beginning of their careers.
  3. Chelsea Beckman of 1715 Roseland presented information about the upcoming 2026 Winter Solstice Luminaria and 2027 Garden Walk events
    • The Luminaria event will be held on Monday, December 21. Volunteers are needed for placing bags of sand and candles in each paper bag, placing the bags along each street, lighting the candles, and retrieving the bags the following day.
      • Several meeting attendees indicated on the sign-in sheet that they were interested in volunteering. They will be contacted by Chelsea.
    • The 2027 Garden Walk may be split into two separate dates with one in spring and one in summer due to gardens having plants that bloom at different times of year
      • Several meeting attendees indicated on the sign-in sheet that they were interested in participating. They will be contacted by Chelsea.

Open Discussion

  1. Pat Robertson of 1523 Roseland spoke about her experiences with the maintenance of the street trees in front of her house
  2. Tim Schmitt of 253 Oakland announced his write-in campaign for East Lansing School Board

Adjournment

  • A motion was made and seconded to adjourn the meeting at 5:41pm ET. The motion carried without objection.

Minutes submitted by: Steve Beckman

Minutes approved by: TBD